The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-12

was man, his wife and little child His
name could not be learned to-day,
but it Is said he got on at
Peoria. When the accident occurred the
entire family of three was caught and held
down by broken woodwork Finally, when
relief came, the man turned to the friendly
rescuers and feebly said: Take out my wife
first, Pm afraid the child is dead So they
carried out the mother, and as the broken seat
was taken off her crushed breast, and the
blood which welled from her lips told how
badly she was hurt. They carried the child,
a fair haired, blue eyed girl of three, and
laid her in corn field. dead, alongside
her dying mother Then they went
back for the father and brought
him out, Both his legs were broken, but he
crawled through the corn to the side of his
wife, and feeling her loved features in the
darkness pressed some brandy to her lips,
and asked her how she felt. A feeble groan
was the only answer, and the next instant
she died The man felt the
forms of his dead wife and child
and cried out My God, there is nothing
more for me to live for now and taking a
pistol out of his pocket pulled the trigger.
The bullet went through his brain, and the
three dead bodies of that little family are
now lying side by side in Chatsworth wait
ing to be identified"
THE ORIGIN OF THE FIRE
There have been many guesses as to the
origin of the fire which weakened the
bridge and caused the accident, but so far
they are nothing but guesses. The most
probable one is that a spark from the fur
mace of the engine of the train which
passed two hours before caused the
blaze. The season has been very
dry hereabouts for long time,
and almost no rain has fallen, and SO the
woodwork of the bridge burned like tinder
A live coal dropped on it would fire it at
once, and as result the accident soon fol-
lowed. Another and startling theory is one
of train wrecking. This is an awful one to
contemplate but has its adherents. They
point to the fact that there were a lot of
thieves about and to the additional fact that
they seemed to be members of an organiza-
ton working together, and the dia-
bolical heartlessness with which they
went about their work indicated
deviishness which would stop at nothing
The news of the disaster was brought to
ChatswOrth by one of the passengers about
midnight, and the inhabitants around Sc
cured buggies, lumber wagons and every
kind of vehicle to reach the fatal spot. As
fast as the corpses were taken from the wreck
they were laid out on the side of the
track Before daylight the work of recov-
worth was begun. As soon as the corpses
were received they were placed in a large
empty building lately occupied as a store,
in the public school houses and depot wait
ing rooom. The residents of the town
threw open their houses for the
reception of the dead and wounded,
but the former were taken to improvised
morgues. The friends and relatives of the
dead came to Chatsworth with the remains
and the scenes in the different places where
the bodies lay were most heartrending and
distressing. As the day passed bodies were
being continually brought in from the scene
of the wreck. A majority of them were
maDgled in a most frightful manner, many
of them having their faces entirely torn
away, leaving their brains exposed, while
others had their fingers andlegs torn off.
ONLY SIX SAVED OUT OF ONE CAR.
The Times Galesburg, ILL.,, special says:
ga number Of Galesburg people who were
on the excursion train returned tonight. w.
Quicker and wife were in the rear end of the
chair car. The shock came about ten min
utes to II o'clock. was reused, said Mr.
Quicker, by the smashing glass and the
and by shrieks of pain and
cries for help Our car had been telescoped
and was standing nearly on end, one end
being fifteen feet in the air. / broke the
car window and managed to slide down the
side. Others of the party did the same.
The car was a sight. The top was parted
and the sides crushed ia. At the
time of the accident there were thirty in
the car. Six of us got out alive. 1t was
horrible. There Were hardly any lights to
be had There was no water. The cars
caught fire; switches and earth were used to
put out the flames.
MOST PATHETIC SIGHTS.
81 saw most pathetic sights, parents car
rying dead children in their arms, children
clamoring for their parents, wounded per-
sons crawling painfully into adjacent corn
fields and cries for water and for help pre-
vailing on all sides. A woman sitting in
front of me had her head taken
off. Six young men from Canton
in the front car were saved by being thrown
by the shock through the parted roof. L
heard that one man who had lost his wife
and child committed suicide Other Gales
burg people agree in the statement about
the tiimsy character of t1e bridge.
P. p. Vinliew, of Galesburg, was in the
chair car mentioned. A moment before the
accident he walked to the end of the car
that suffered most and was dangerously in
jured.
William Collins, of this city, was killed.
Mrs E. NJ Snedaker, of Abingdon, was
killed and her little son lost a leg.
Mrs. 5. M. Smith, of Galesburg, was badly
injured.
Mrs. A. j. Mcclure and her baby were
killed. Her husband is a railroad contractor
now employed here. Most intense excite
ment has prevailed here all day.
CHATswoRTH's CHARNEL HOUSES.
CHATswoRTH, ILL, Aug u.-Charnel
houses and hospitals make up tonight what
has been the peaceful village of Chatsworth.
OF the 800 merry exCuu'sionsts journeying
by here to the falls of Niagara twenty-four
hours ago fully half that number have since
passed through maelstrom more fearful
than all the whirlng waters they
were travelling far to see. Eighty-four
of them are blackened, charred corpses, are
scattered in depots, schools and engine
houses here and at Piper City, or are being
carried on trains in all directions to their
homes, while ll5 bandaged, moaning Grip
pies are stretched on all the avail
able mattresses, beds, chairs and floors
in this vicinity struggling for
a little lease Of life. The streets Of Chats
worth are filled with crowds of anxious
seekers for friends and relatives, and with
other crowds of hustling people hurrying
for medicines, slowly bearing rude pine
collins to the trains, or talking earnestly of
the horror that has caused the CONSERVATION.
MISSED THE TRAIN BY FIVE MINUTES.
r. G. Risser, of Kankakee, said: II was
at FL Paso and missed the excursion train
by less than five minutes. | then took a
freight twenty-six minutes later, and when
we got to Forest the conductor had orders to
leave all his load secure all the physicians
axnI